DCL or another line?

[RysMomma]

We did the Anthem of the Seas during Christmas week with my kids (my daughter is 13 and my son turned 16 on the cruise). We had fun, we definitely did. But, my kids missed their Disney cruise aspects. Now, Anthem doesn't have any waterslides so they missed their AquaDuck a ton, but other than that, there were other things that weren't the same for us. We're trying to do an Alaska cruise in 2025 and we're definitely torn on what to do. The kids really want Disney but we could only do one room compared to two on Royal. Big decisions to make.

 

[starvenger]

That one is tough. One stateroom with two teens can feel very crowded. That's why on my cruise on Regal Princess, we opted for connecting rooms as opposed to a four person room. The extra shower is a nice perk as well.

Then again, we managed to navigate through France in single (albeit "family sized") hotel rooms with one bathroom, and it wasn't too bad. We just needed to coordinate beforehand.

 

[tidefan]

We did the Anthem of the Seas during Christmas week with my kids (my daughter is 13 and my son turned 16 on the cruise). We had fun, we definitely did. But, my kids missed their Disney cruise aspects. Now, Anthem doesn't have any waterslides so they missed their AquaDuck a ton, but other than that, there were other things that weren't the same for us. We're trying to do an Alaska cruise in 2025 and we're definitely torn on what to do. The kids really want Disney but we could only do one room compared to two on Royal. Big decisions to make.

Just a thought. Alaska is a completely different cruise animal than the Caribbean. There are actually some distinct advantages to doing the R/T Wonder cruise out of Vancouver, mainly that you will have the complete inside passage the whole way up and back, and it makes for a completely different experience!

Also, if you do the R/T out of Seattle (which will go up the west side of Vancouver Island instead), you may want to also look at Princess and HAL. They tend to get preferred docking since they've been up there so long. They also both go to Glacier Bay, which RCCL does not. Also consider that due to weather, many of the deck activities that kids may like on Royal (such as waterslides, rock walls, flow riders, etc.) may not run often (this is also true of those NCL ships with the go-kart tracks - they are often shut down and those items take away deck space). Princess is probably more kid-friendly than HAL, but I think you would enjoy either line (though the Royal Class ships on Princess, IMHO, are better than the Grand class ships).

 

[RysMomma]

Just a thought. Alaska is a completely different cruise animal than the Caribbean. There are actually some distinct advantages to doing the R/T Wonder cruise out of Vancouver, mainly that you will have the complete inside passage the whole way up and back, and it makes for a completely different experience!

Also, if you do the R/T out of Seattle (which will go up the west side of Vancouver Island instead), you may want to also look at Princess and HAL. They tend to get preferred docking since they've been up there so long. They also both go to Glacier Bay, which RCCL does not. Also consider that due to weather, many of the deck activities that kids may like on Royal (such as waterslides, rock walls, flow riders, etc.) may not run often (this is also true of those NCL ships with the go-kart tracks - they are often shut down and those items take away deck space). Princess is probably more kid-friendly than HAL, but I think you would enjoy either line (though the Royal Class ships on Princess, IMHO, are better than the Grand class ships).

Thank you for this information! I was thinking the same thing about the complete inside passage! I appreciate everything you said!

 

[DCLMP]

Trying to decide on our next cruise. This would be with girls 16, 14, 11 and 7 in October ‘24. Prior to having kids we did multiple cruise lines. Since we’ve had kids we’ve done exclusively DCL. We’ve been on Magic, Wonder, Dream and most recently Wish. Pretty limited in terms of destinations in October but honestly go for the ship and not the ports.

I know the 7 year old would love doing Disney again. The other kids had a great time but didn’t really do any of the formal activities.

Does anyone have an opinion on branching out to one of the bigger ships (?Royal Carribean oasis class) with activities like: Ultimate Abyss dry slide and Perfect Storm water slides, FlowRiders, rock climbing walls, zipline, water park, mini-golf and laser tag, ice rink etc?

Thanks for any insights/opinions.

Disney is great for your kids ages. My kids loved Disney throughout all the age groups and my son just had a great cruise in the 1820 society. We’ve also cruise Royal, Carnival, and NCL and they loved all of them.
So no your kids aren’t told for Disney their teen programming is great, but don’t let people tell other cruise lines are inferior and you need to pay Disney prices. Do what works best for your budget. Your kids will have a great time on any of them.

 

[DCLMP]

How was the 1820 Society for your son? My daughter has loved Edge/Vibe, but alas they grow up! This upcoming one is her first one outside the clubs and I’m concerned if she’ll enjoy it. (For points of reference, she’s outgoing, makes friends easily, and it’s during a school break

Weve done two cruises since my son hit the 1820 society. On one off season there was only two people that showed up and and our European cruise there was a probably 30 kids. Excuse me “ young adults” lol. It seems to be dependent on time of year and itinerary. We are cruising during Spring break in 6 weeks. I’d be happy to let you know how the turn out is in 1820 society.
My son met friends during the meet ups on our European cruise and went to all the adult activities and shows with his friends. He had a great time. He is very outgoing, but keep in mind there are no specific activities for that age group.

 

[tidefan]

Thank you for this information! I was thinking the same thing about the complete inside passage! I appreciate everything you said!

Yep, we actually really loved the 2 Princess cruises we did from Seattle, but the Disney Wonder cruise we did from Vancouver is still our absolute favorite cruise we've ever done. Yes, the first reason was probably because it was our first time to Alaska and it was a DVC Member Cruise (with all the extra entertainment like the broadway show, getting to see Inside/Out a month before it came out, and getting to meet the director of the "Lava" short and hearing him talk about the influence Hawaii had on his life and how it shaped the short, and then playing the song on the ukulele... but I digress...)

However, the second reason was that we sailed the full inside passage, which you will only do R/T if you sail from Vancouver on a ship small enough to do it. That first day going up between the BC Coast and Vancouver Island was magical. It was literally like cruising down a river.

 

[ScooterScott44]

Adding some perspective from our sons cruises. We started cruising when he was 1 and pretty much stuck with DCL (he is platinum). He was 8 or so when we did out first Royal sailing (he is Diamond). At 13-14 he also has been on HAL once and MSC twice.

Usually he will say he likes the last cruise line he has been on the best, LOL. We are going on Harmony of the Sea for the second time next week for his 16th birthday but he also asks about doing MSC again. He was pretty active with the larger Royal ships when he was a little younger, including many of the activities on the Oasis and Quantum class ships. DCL still has some interest but not as much as it once did.

 

[OpieDoodle]

I personally have been on quite a few different cruise lines. As an adult only party I'd say branch out if you aren't a crazy disney person.

We took my niece on a Carnival cruise and it was honestly a big bummer for her. When we got on we found out there was like 17 total kids her age on the entire ship. No one was ever in the clubs or anything. She was 12/13 when we went if I remember correctly. So she got bored pretty quickly.

 

[starvenger]

Usually he will say he likes the last cruise line he has been on the best

Sounds like he's a cruiser for life.

We took my niece on a Carnival cruise and it was honestly a big bummer for her. When we got on we found out there was like 17 total kids her age on the entire ship. No one was ever in the clubs or anything. She was 12/13 when we went if I remember correctly. So she got bored pretty quickly.

That's always a concern.

Truthfully, for teens it's
a) hard to predict how many kids in their age group will be aboard, and
b) how many of those kids they'll get along with.

 

[tidefan]

I personally have been on quite a few different cruise lines. As an adult only party I'd say branch out if you aren't a crazy disney person.

If you are an adult only party, I'd highly recommend Virgin Voyages. The food is very good, and everything sans alcohol and shore excursions is pretty much included.

 

[OpieDoodle]

If you are an adult only party, I'd highly recommend Virgin Voyages. The food is very good, and everything sans alcohol and shore excursions is pretty much included.

Honestly for me, we do adult only now on DCL LOL!